M1 Garand
The M1 Garand is a semi-automatic rifle originally chambered in .30-06 but now able to utilize a variety of ammunition. In the modern world, the Garand has become little more than a historical piece values by collectors and firearms enthusiasts. In military usage, the rifle is still used on ceremonial occasions such as parades, awards ceremonies, drill practice (due to its relatively light wooden furniture), and at funerals where it is utilized in a twenty-one gun salute. What immortalized the weapon however was not its role in two wars in the twentieth century, but rather the sound produced by the gun when the weapon is reloaded, which is commonly spelled as a 'ping'. As a result, amateur arms manufacturers have created what is now referred to as a Garand-type rifle, which is any rifle that utilizes an ejecting clip shot through the top of the weapon. Description & History The Garand rifle was created by John Garand, an American arms manufacturer, who created the weapon for usage as the American military's battle rifle. The concept of a self-loading rifle was not unheard of by the time the weapon was conceived of in 1919, but it was still a relatively new way of creating rifle feeding mechanisms. John Garand tried extensively to deliver the rifle into the hands of the military through several rifle trials. At the time, the Pederson .276 rifle was the clear victor with the US military in 1928, forcing Garand to bide his time until the 1931 Rifle Trials, in which the weapon was finally accepted. Originally, the Garand was chambered in the same .276 caliber round that was used in its' competitor, the Pederson T1, but eventually the decision was made to chamber the Garand in .30 caliber. The Garand was first adopted with the moniker, Semi-Automatic Rifle, Caliber .30, M1, denoting its new life as a service weapon. History best remembers the M1's role in World War II when it was a standard issue battle rifle issued to the United States military during its fighting in both Europe and the Pacific. This came at a time when much of the world was still utilizing bolt action weaponry, such as the Germans fielding the K98k rifle, the British boasting the Lee-Enfield rifle, and the Japanese military outfitting its troops with the Arisaka rifle. Semi-Automatic weapons were indeed in play, but they were not as wide-spread as the Garand was with its users. The Garand also had the claim of being one of the first used in the field. Many of the other semi-automatic rifles such as the Russian SKS and the German G43, were not developed until close to the end of the war. The ability to move into a firing position and send eight .30 caliber rounds down range without having to change hand position on the gun was beyond innovative, it was described by General George S. Patton as being "the greatest impliment of battle ever devised". Indeed, the fielding of the Garand likely gave the allies the advantage early in the war. Certainly in combat before the StG 44 was fielded, the usage of a mid-range round like the .30-06 without needing to manually work the bolt on the weapon, the Garand was the be-all-end-all. By the time other weapons were fielded, the war was essentially over. The spread of the Garand was so immense that that it led the Japanese to attempt to reverse-engineer it in the form of the Type 4 rifle, which never moved beyond prototype phase and never saw battle. The Garand also saw usage in the Korean War which lasted from 1950 to 1953. It continued to serve as the main battle weapon for the US in this time. Even as far as the Vietnam war in the 1960s it continued to be a major player in the United States' arsenal, even at this time when the military would begin fielding the successor to the M1, the M14, and in some cases, the Colt Model 609, also called the CAR-15, which would later become the M-16. The Garand participated in numerous other conflicts that were spread across the globe as it was simple to use and packed major damage. Even during the 21st Century, almost a hundred years after the weapon was first conceived of, the Garand still found fans, attracted to the history, the silhouette, and the distinctive 'ping' made through the ejected en bloc clip. By the 23rd Century, the Garand had far been surpassed by modern weaponry such as Misriah Armories' MA5-series of rifles which boasted larger cartridges, superior range, and a slew of electronic attachments that made it a battlefield computer as well as a rifle. However, the Garand was still honored as a ceremonial weapon, and .30-06 was, and still is, produced for it for recreational shooting and ceremony. It was perhaps for that reason that the Lost Million brought several shipments of the Garand aboard the colony ships that were intended to colonize nearby stars. The Garand was one of the oldest guns ever to cross to a different universe altogether, eventually ending up on what was called Terra Nova and what would later be called Mobius by the colonists. The Garand continued to be used as a training weapon and as a ceremonial piece. 3D Assemblers were able to build basic ammunition for the gun, which ensured that the users would have as much ammunition as they needed. The PSF were noted to use the weapon for funeral ceremonies most of all. As time went on, the Garand became more geared towards civilian users with farmers and adventurers constructing their own as they headed out into the wilderness. Meanwhile, back in the Home Universe, the Garand was barely more than an attraction as weapon technology had advanced towards using the 7.62x51mm round as the standard issue cartridge for the Human military. However, hunters and collectors still favored the Garand for its old-time charm. It was never used in large-scale combat ever again with the exception of militias on lightly-defended worlds and with special forces units with a taste for nostalgia. They could still be built to designer specifications and due to the fact that the schematics were ubiquitous, especially by the 33rd Century. Garand's legacy would reach the stars, and as it turned out, the ping of the weapon was a universal draw. The Garand functioned through gas operation, feeding cartridges from an eight shot internal magazine. The weapon is loaded by clip. The rounds are held together in what is known as an en bloc clip, a bracket shaped device that held each bullet before it was fired. The user places the clip into the receiver. The way the Garand is designed, the instant that thumb pressure is released from the top of the clip, the bolt slams shut, which can possibly lead to the operator's thumb being caught in the closing piece of metal - a condition lovingly referred to as 'Garand Thumb'. Some users place the clip into the receiver while using the remaining fingers to keep the charging handle restrained to avoid this scenario though. Each shot ejected a round and chambered an additional. When the final round is expended, the magazine follower kicks the clip up and away from the weapon, which produces the Garand's distinctive 'ping' noise. The generally accepted rule with the Garand is to expend all ammunition in the magazine before reloading. It is possible to reload the weapon mid- clip, but it is a more cumbersome process that is typically avoided. However, modern versions of the weapon contain a means of ejecting the weapon through the charging handle canting when in the locked position. This forces the clip to be released along with any bullets still within. This also ejects the unfired round from the chamber which means that it is impossible to have a round tactically charged. Modern versions of the Garand can also accept accessories like red dot scopes and grips. Some scorn users for burying a simple rifle under so much technology though, and purists tend to take the gun in its barest form with only its irons for help. The weapon has an effective range of 450 meters though some variants firing DMR-chamber ammunition have extended this to 750 meters. The gun can even be converted to a sniper rifle which can boost the range to well over a kilometer. List of Appearances * The Story of Mobius * Deception * En Bloc Category:Weapon Category:Semi-Auto Rifle